High Achiever

Professor Isaacowitz is the 2006 recipient of the Springer Early Career Achievement Award from Division 20 (Adult Development and Aging) of the American Psychological Association.

Derek Isaacowitz

Associate Professor of Psychology and of the Volen National Center for Complex Systems
Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania

Current research
My current research asks how our personal goals influence the way we see the world, and how this changes with age. New technologies allow us to measure, in real time, where exactly a person is looking and how he or she is feeling. I am using this technology to investigate whether older individuals use their gaze to regulate how they feel, as they encounter what might be painful or upsetting.       

Favorite classroom experience
Every year in my Social Psychology course, I talk about a series of studies on attraction that were conducted on a scary bridge, high above raging water, near Vancouver. A few years ago, I went to the bridge, and now, when I get to that part of the course, I show a whole series of pictures of me (afraid of heights) scared beyond belief as I cross the bridge. After that, everyone remembers those studies that were conducted there!  

What makes Brandeis special
Brandeis truly combines the individual attention of a small college with the high-level research environment of a major university. The undergraduates who work in my research lab (and in the many others like it) have an amazing opportunity to get involved in all aspects of research, and many even end up as co-authors on the papers that result from the work.

Last book read for pleasure
"Sweet and Low" by Rich Cohen

Favorite world city to visit
Vancouver — and not just for that scary bridge! It is both a beautiful place and a big city, with great food and then, right around the corner, an amazing park to walk around.